Timeline

Mabel Ruth Voyles(Daniel’s Mother) is born on June 5 in Delhi, California. She was the sixth of ten children.

Daniel Dale Johnston was born in Sacramento, CA, to Bill and Mabel Johnston. (They lived nearby in Fair Oaks, CA) He was a late addition to the family, born 7 years after his nearest sibling, Dick. Throughout his life, Daniel repeatedly noted that he shared a birthday with Lewis Carroll (Alice in Wonderland), but he was mistaken. Lewis Carroll’s birthday was actually January 27th. His first word was “eye.” Or “I.” He always said that the two terms were interchangeable and that he meant both things. Dick told me he also had a security blanket when he was very young and would say “I want my eye/I!” In “A Year in My Garden” diary entries, Daniel often conflated the two words (as in “Eye want you, Eye love you, etc.”) “A Year in My Garden” is a sort of diary that each of the Johnston children wrote in, but that Daniel wrote in the most, by far. It’s also a great artifact of Daniel’s progress as a young artist. In particular, he drew Frankenstein repeatedly, getting better and better from year to year. Mabel monitored this diary and sometimes edited or censored entries that were not to her liking.

The family moved to Brigham City, Utah, where Bill worked for Thiokol, in the development of Minuteman missiles, for the government, about 20 miles out, near the Salt Flats. Daniel’s only clear memories from the years he lived in Utah were of living in a suburban neighborhood and playing with children of his own age.

When Daniel was 4 years old, Mabel began the practice of supplying him with small, 3” x 5” notepads to draw in, so that he’d behave at church. In later years, when asked how he began as an artist and who first encouraged him, he credited his mother Mabel for encouraging him and buying him “lots of paper.”[1] Although he drew a lot during church services, he was still able to absorb the sermons and he eagerly participated in the group singing. As a small child, Daniel was a little rambunctious but he was well-liked by church friends and neighbors alike. [1] 1991 Harris Video Interviews

The only rock group Daniel knew about when he decided to start drawing, around age 4, was The Monkees. “And I still like The Monkees. I still listen to them.” This is notable as coincidental to the constant theme of and identification with ‘monkeys’ in Daniel’s later songwriting and notebooks. 1991 Harris Video Interviews Jeff Tartakov pointed out to me that The Monkees didn’t exist until Daniel was 5, so his memory is a bit off here. He was 4 ½ when they left Utah.

In January of 1966, seven months before he would enter kindergarten, Daniel was enrolled in a preschool program call “Head Start,” at a public school in Pughtown, where he attended grammar school. Pughtown was about 4 miles from the family home and Daniel took the school bus there. Daniel was an energetic, bright, and unusually creative student. He placed first in each program he was in, and teachers and school administrators took notice of the special kid in their midst.[1] Mabel looked after two neighborhood children, David and Sherry Cowey, who were close to Daniel in age. After school, the three children rode the bus to the Johnston home and played together until Mrs. Cowey got off work and retrieved her children. Beyond that, Daniel fills his time in play and by drawing. Daniel, like each of his siblings before him, repeatedly described his childhood as “very happy” and said he “always wanted to return to the happiness I had in my childhood.”[2] [3] In high school notebooks, again and again, he wrote the phrase, “I was thinking about when I was a little kid. I’m always thinking about when I was a little kid.” Only a few years later, he included that phrase in a spoken intro to the song “When You’re Pretty.”[4] In 1983, in the course of reading a 1973 letter from his mother to his sister Margy, he again recalled his idyllic youth and said, “That was the Danny, that was the real Danny. You never knew that guy. That was the me that I was always trying to remember.”[5] This desire to return to a childhood he remembered as being purely idyllic, is a prominent theme in his songs and artwork.   [1] Mabel’s recollections [2] CS0383a 01 Daniel Interview with Himself, 1988 [3] The lyric in “Going Down,” “To think that I once had it all” can only have referred to the idyllic nature of his childhood, a carefree time that was uncorrupted by depression or other emotional difficulties. [4] “When You’re Pretty,” The What of Whom, 1982 [5] 9:00, DT001_1, September 1983

Elementary school, grades K-6. He was very popular among his peers, a phenomenon he later described as feeling like “the captain of the big gang.”[1] But, even though he received an unusual amount of attention from friends, family, teachers, and fellow churchgoers, Daniel often felt like a “loner” and spent a lot of time by himself, whiling away the hours by drawing.[2] As a child, Daniel often attended Arner Funeral Home after church. As he would relate it later, when he was on his way out the door, the funeral director would say, “See you later!” He repeated this, jokingly, to elementary school friends, and it seems that this could have been the spark for a fascination with—and ability to joke about—death.[3] Inspired by an early love of comic strips, Daniel began drawing an original series of comic strips about his cat, Sassy Fras. First, he drew her as a cat. Later, she evolved into a man with arms and legs. Later still, she evolved into a superhero. Until his psychotic break in December 1986, in Austin, Daniel almost always had one or more comic strip(s) going.[4] In elementary school, Daniel was often in trouble for drawing in class and was a regular visitor to the principal’s office.[5] But, as much as his teachers would have preferred for him to pay attention in class, they were enamored of his artwork, which hung proudly on many teachers’ walls. The school principal was so impressed with his art that he invited young Danny to have dinner at his home and meet his family, an extraordinary gesture. When he was 7 or 8 years old, Daniel realized, to his horror, that he had not yet been baptized. Bill and Mabel explained that he needed to be older, and more knowledgeable, to receive a proper baptism. [1] CS0344_0 1983 letter to David Thornberry, recorded Aug. 28, 1983 [2] CS0344_0 1983 letter to David Thornberry, recorded Aug. 28, 1983 [3]“My Dinner with Daniel” YouTube video. Also elsewhere. August 1988 [4] Virtually every notebook before his 1986 psychotic break, including many that were lost when he threw all his belongings into a dumpster as soon as he was released from Austin State Hospital. [1] “You’re Gonna Make It Joe,” More Songs of Pain, 1983

When he was 7 years old, Daniel discovered a Doberman Pinscher hanging by its neck from the swing set of Sarita Berkheimer, a girl his age that lived down the hill and across the road from the Johnston home. Daniel was badly spooked, both by the general scene and by a perfect triangle of feces that had formed beneath the dog’s corpse[1]. Daniel would go on to recount this story again and again. It is memorialized in the song “Dead Dog Laughing in a Cloud” on Continued Story and it may have played a small role in his “Dead Dog’s Eyeball” phase in high school, though the “Dead Dog’s Eyeball” was primarily influenced by a lyric from “I Am the Walrus,” by The Beatles. 20 years later, in 1988, Daniel reencountered Sarita at Weston State Hospital (Weston, WV), when they were both patients there, and convinced her the Mountain Dew was not poisoned.[2] When we met Sarita at Daniel’s 40th high school reunion, she told us that there had been a feud with some neighbors, who probably hanged the dog, but told her the dog had hanged itself. Prior to this incident Bill and Mabel had determined that the Berkheimer’s were a bad influence and Daniel was forbidden to play with the Berkheimer children. [1] Margy Johnston interview [2] NBZ014, p. 100

Daniel began a lifelong habit of recording himself practicing and playing the piano, and then playing the recordings back. In a 1969 letter to Margy, Mabel wrote, “Danny enjoys playing the piano but I have to push him to practice.” After re-reading the letter to David Thornberry on a 1983 tape letter, he went on to explain, “Mom paid for my sister Sally to have [piano] lessons. Then Sally taught Margy, Margy taught Cindy, and Cindy taught Dick, and Dick and Cindy taught me.”[1] [1] 7:48, DT005_0 Sept 6 1983 Letter to Dave (San Marcus)

Cindy left home to attend Abilene Christian College (ACC), leaving Dick and Daniel as the only siblings still living at home.

Daniel was baptized, 4 days after his 12th birthday.[1] [1] 16:43, DT001_1; 16:12. CS0360_0 Apr 8 88 Preaching the gospel in the darkes of a disco party

Daniel had a pizza party at home, and invited all his friends. Randy Yost, Daniel’s best friend at the time, was picking on Daniel’s friend, Pete Chevron, for wearing hand-me-down clothes. Daniel leapt to Pete’s defense. This is consistent with “associating with the lowly,” a Christian value that Daniel was taught in church and practiced forever after.[1] [1] Dick Johnston, relating a story he heard various times

Dick moves to Abilene, TX to attend Abilene Christian University, leaving Daniel alone at home with his aging parents.

Daniel learned about youth art classes but said that Mabel told him he’d have to wait until college to study art. He said that he planned to study it on his own, by looking at art books and comic books.

Daniel leaves elementary school, begins junior high (Jr grades 7-9). Junior high begins Daniel’s depression. Mabel takes Daniel to counselors. Daniel entered 7th grade and junior high School at Chester.[1] In the Chester area, students that had been together since kindergarten were divided and reallocated to 3 different junior high schools. (If the Johnston family home had been only a short distance from where it was, Daniel would have attended school with many more of his elementary school friends.[2]) The transition from elementary school to junior high school is often a difficult one, but the problems associated with questions of “coolness” and the onset of adolescence, were exacerbated in Daniel’s case, as he lost touch with familiar friends and attended his new school with strangers. Now Living alone at home with his parents, Daniel had his first experience with major depression, and it hit him “like a ton of bricks.”[3][4] In 2009, Dale Dudgeon noted, “[If] his depression began in 7th or 8th grade, like he related to me, when he parted ways with Randy [Yost]… We didn’t have the tools. You didn’t take your kid to the doctor—no, he’s crazy!”[5] In interviews with Dale he explained further: [I need to track down this quote and citation for the above and below. The quote above is accurate but the quote below is paraphrased. Citations for each are somewhere in my first phone interview with Dale. The following is a placeholder.] ‘The way people thought back then, you were either crazy enough to be locked away in an asylum for life or you were sane. There wasn’t any in between. So, nobody would have taken Daniel’s condition seriously. We just didn’t think that way. We thought he was hyperactive and a little quirky but otherwise fine.’ Dale speculated in the same interview that it was Daniel’s time in Austin that truly broke him. Dale held a grudge toward Daniel’s friends in Austin, believing that Austin was the site of Daniel’s first experience with drugs [It was the carnival, two years prior.] and that his friends there were taking bets on when he’d die. The second untrue rumor understandably made him very upset, but it wasn’t true. In a follow-up interview with Dale, I dispelled both rumors and he was relieved to learn that Daniel’s Austin friends really did care for him and were doing their best to look after him.[6] It’s unclear exactly when Daniel’s first major depression began, but we have evidence that points to a span of 7th/8th grade to 10th grade.[7] Here’s what we know: The above facts strongly suggest that Daniel’s depression began in or around early 8th grade, his second year of junior high school, and that he recovered from that depressive episode sometime during his first year of high school, 10th grade.[14] Daniel described his first depression as very scary because he didn’t know what was happening to him. In 2009, he said the depression he experienced then was probably the worst of his life.[15] Friends remarked that he wasn’t himself and expressed disappointment that he was no longer lively and entertaining. His best friend at the time, Randy Yost, told him he was too weird to hang out with anymore.[16] He extensively detailed the onset of his first depression, and corresponding suicidal ideation, in journals he wrote as an assignment for his high school English teacher.[17] By way of an extraordinary series of events, Daniel wound up diagnosing himself as a manic depressive without ever seeing a doctor. In junior high school, he sequestered himself in the school library, “to avoid having to see anyone.”[18] While there he pored over art books and took a special liking to the work of Vincent Van Gogh. That led him to read about Van Gogh’s life and learn that he was a manic depressive, with symptoms that matched his own. From that point forward, he thought of himself as a manic depressive.[19] In The Devil and Daniel Johnston, Mabel referred to him having “lost his confidence” in junior high school, and that it was only years later that she realized he’d been exhibiting the first signs of his illness.[20] Similarly, in a 2005 interview, Bill said, “We were dumb enough to think he was just spoiled.”[21] But nobody that knew Daniel before he moved to Texas in 1983 suspected any form of mental illness. As early as fall 1979 (at ACU), Daniel expressed that his greatest fear, from junior high school until the end of his life, was to be locked away in an insane asylum. He heard the song “We’re Coming to Take You Away Ha-Ha.” It is likely that Daniel ran away with the carnival because he was convinced that his family was conspiring to have him committed. He also twice attacked people (Randy Kemper, Steve Shelley) when he believed they were on the verge of doing something that would directly lead to him being committed to a mental hospital. And recorded phone calls and NYC recordings (at least one was in the doc) reveal that his main problem with Jeff Tartakov, and the primary thing that led to Daniel firing Jeff for good, was that he was cooperating too much with Bill and Mabel and that that led to him being committed again. From the David Thornberry “Songwriter of the Year” tape letter, side 2, around the 13-minute mark, in which Daniel cops to being on the verge of madness in early 1986: “I’m definitely in my manic, but I gotta beat my depression cause I don’t want to end up like Roky Erikson, cause you know I understand him, God bless him. But I gotta be more stable and I could go that road, I know I could, but I gotta try to get a hold of myself and my life. And so, so the way, and my ambition to try to do that—other people may interpret it as sort of arrogant miltaryism, that I’m trying, that I do a bunch, a lot …

Dick and Daniel do many creative projects together, including film-making. “It Must Be Monday” produced; mother having provided a film editor. Daniel begins High School (grades 10-12). Things are looking up for Daniel, he gains popularity; he is known as the school artist. He paints the school mascot (bear) on walls, does art for all the event papers and 1979 yearbook, librarian displays new art each week in the library. Daniel pursues girls by talking with British accent; begins writing songs; discovers rock and roll via Kevin Stills. Senior year makes friends with David Thornberry (David had graduated in 1975)

In 10th grade, Daniel discovered The Beatles. He reported that he felt “saved” and that The Beatles “saved my soul.”[1] An interesting note: before he discovered The Beatles, Daniel discovered Paul McCartney, through a single (“Hi Hi Hi/C-Moon”) he’d bought, blindly, at a rummage sale. He recalled being at a record store soon afterward, seeing a Beatles album, and thinking, “This is his old band. I wonder if they’re any good.”[2] The entry below is only to give you guys a fuller picture and will be deleted after you’ve read it: If only he’d kept significant notebooks or recordings during his depressive period, things would be a lot clearer. But it’s not surprising that he didn’t. People experiencing major depression often have trouble expressing themselves at all, and Daniel was no exception to that. Instead, he tended to write about depression after the fact. As I think we’ve discussed, everyone says that Daniel recorded everything, but he didn’t record anything when he was in a major depression. He also stopped tape when he had the nervous breakdown in San Marcos, during the recording of HHAY, that led up to him running away with the carnival. Understandably he never ran tape during psychotic episodes—the only recording I’ve heard of him in a psychotic state was made by Bill. And the only recordings I’ve seen of him in a severely schizophrenic state were made by Jeff Reese. Though Daniel found comfort and happiness in art and music, his depression persisted, albeit to a less paralyzing degree. Importantly, there is ample evidence that Daniel kept his depression to himself and there is no indication that he told anyone about it before his junior or senior year of high school, when he would confess it to Ron Harris and to his high school English teacher. (Mabel’s letters to Dick in the relevant years lack any reference to a problem of any sort.) It was when his depression lifted, sometime in his sophomore year of high school, that he began to draw the ‘dead dog’s eyeballs” everywhere he could. Further, he went about drawing caricatures of classmates and teachers, which he passed out liberally.[3] [1] 1991 Harris Video Interviews, “Rock and Roll EGA,” many more [2] 0:55, Daniel Johnston Studio SX 2009 Interview [3] 17:00, CS0324_0 Devil Talk and Gospel with Steve April 5 88

Songs of Pain is the first album by folk singer-songwriter Daniel Johnston, recorded on a simple tape recorder and released on Compact Cassette. Johnston recorded these songs in the basement of his parents’ house in West Virginia. Johnston recorded the tape between 1980 and 1981, and it was later mass produced on cassette by Stress Records in 1988, and on Compact Disc in 2003 by the label Dual Tone, together with More Songs of Pain as Early Recordings Volume 1. Background Songs of Pain was recorded between 1980 and 1981 during Daniel Johnston’s Freshman, Sophomore and Junior years studying at Kent State University in East Liverpool, Ohio. During this period, Johnston lived in his parents’ basement in West Virginia, where he would make recordings to share with friends and fellow students. In late 1979, Johnston wrote the song “Lazy”, the only song he wrote during that period after dropping out of Abilene Christian University in West Texas. In 1980, he enrolled in Kent State University in East Liverpool, Ohio, where he met Laurie Allen, who would become something of a muse for Johnston. Johnston had a crush on Allen and equated her with true love and all that was good with the world. He became romantically obsessed with her, and after being complimented on his piano playing by Allen, was inspired to take up piano playing as a daily routine alongside recording his work and compiling it onto cassettes to share with his peers. The material was recorded on a $59 Sanyo cassette recorder with Radio Shack tape stock. Johnston performed most of the instrumentation and overdubbed the vocals himself. Shortly after this, Allen relocated to Florida after her boyfriend, who was studying in Florida, graduated and became a mortician there. The departure left Johnston emotionally distraught. He saw Allen shortly afterward when he accompanied a friend to a funeral hosted at the home where she was employed. The awkward encounter which ensued inspired the song “Grievances,” written in early 1980 – which in November, he jokingly described as a “fluke.” In the Summer of 1980, Johnston wrote “Wicked World,” which he described as giving him more confidence in his songwriting. He was ‘lost in limbo land,’ writing music ’24 hours’ with lyrics devised by his friends. By the time the album was finished in 1981, Johnston was already in his Junior year of University. As he had no way of copying tapes at the time, each version featured a recording unique to the person to whom it was gifted. The later mass-copied version was given to musician/painter Kathy McCarty, who met Johnston circa 1985. This version was released in 1988 by Jeff Tartakov’s Stress Records. Sound All songs feature Johnston on vocals and piano, except for “Premarital Sex”, where he plays the organ. The opening track, “Grievances”, introduces themes that reoccur throughout Johnston’s career. He sings about his unrequited love for “the librarian”, which refers to a girl named Laurie Allen who has functioned as a muse in many of Johnston’s songs; this has been described as the quintessential Daniel Johnston song, including by Johnston himself. The lyrical and the musical themes of the song have been alluded to in later works, some examples include ‘Museum of Love’ which features an identical chord progression in its verses, as well as ‘Love Defined’, (From both The Lost Recordings and Yip/Jump Music) which features part of the same progression during the line ‘Love does not insist on its own way‘. The word “grievances” has also been reused in the song title “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Your Grievances“. Other themes on the album are premarital sex (“Joy Without Pleasure” and “Premarital Sex”), Christianity (“A Little Story”) and cannabis (“Pot Head”) – the latter of which was directed at a friend of Johnston’s. As a way to fuel his art, Johnston began to record every conversation he had, re-using phrases from these recordings as lyrics and, most notably, sampling confrontations between himself and his mother on the tapes. Bob Dylan was an influence on the album; Johnston described “Grievances” as his “Like a Rolling Stone,” took inspiration from the ‘Budokan‘ version of “I Want You” for the ‘high-piercing sound’ of “Urge,” and wrote “Hate Song” after being inspired by lyrics in the song “Dirge.” Another influence was Slim Whitman, who inspired “Wild West Virginia.” David Raposa for Pitchfork also noted an influence from The Kinks‘ “Lola” on the track “Wicked Will”, and Billboard Magazine compared ‘Urge’ to material by Plastic Ono Band, as well as “Joy Without Pleasure” to the ‘prim’ song-writing of Paul McCartney. Legacy In a 2003 review of the ‘Songs of Pain’ CD compilation (which collects both this album and its 1983 sequel ‘More Songs of Pain‘), David Raposa for Pitchfork discussed the album’s tracks positively, describing the material as ‘chilling,’ ‘jaunty’ and ‘happy-go-lucky.’ In Pitchfork’s 2010 review of ‘The Story of an Artist‘ (a six-disc collection of Johnston’s early material), Douglas Wolk described “Never Relaxed” as ‘The funniest thing that Johnston ever recorded,’ and ‘Living Life’ as ‘A bloodied but unbowed power-pop tune.’ Wolk also compared the album to ‘More Songs of Pain,’ which he called ‘A more accomplished if less bracing take on a lot of the same themes.’ On Billboard’s ’12 essential Daniel Johnston Tracks’ article, both ‘Urge’ and ‘Joy Without Pleasure’ were included. Willoughby Thom, writing for The Observer’s retrospective on Daniel Johnston, describes Songs of Pain favorably, calling it ‘Emotional and intensely beautiful,’ praising its sincerity, truth, and simplistic lyrics. In July 2021, the RO2 Gallery in Dallas, Texas, hosted an exhibition of Johnston’s art named after the album, ‘Story of an Artist & Songs of Pain’. In 2023, a 2xLP version of the album was released, featuring eight bonus tracks. Influence In Hi How Are You, a book written on Johnston’s career, Songs of Pain was listed as one of Kathy McCarty‘s most favored albums by the artist and she included five songs from the album on her 1994 tribute to Johnston, Dead Dog’s Eyeball. In 1995, her cover of “Living Life” was featured in the romantic drama film, Before Sunrise. Songs of Pain (1980) by Daniel Johnston

Background The album was recorded in August 1982 between Johnston’s Junior and Senior years studying at Kent State University, East Liverpool, Ohio. The album, like Songs of Pain and Don’t Be Scared before it, was recorded in his parents’ basement in West Virginia, where the 21 year old Johnston was living at the time. A guest writer for Atwood Magazine noted influences from Elvis Costello and The Beatles (particularly early John Lennon) on the track ‘Man Obsessed.’ During this same time, Johnston recorded an unreleased tape known as ‘Ugly Music’ for his friend John Fair. The tape was largely made up of material written for Songs of Pain, but also included Don’t Be Scared and What of Whom songs, as well as 3 unreleased songs. Artwork The cover artwork is a drawing by Johnston of a woman’s torso, inspired by Venus de Milo and Venus of Willendorf. The torso represents sex and the objectified, mystified, and dehumanized way women are portrayed in his lyrics and artwork. Legacy In 2010, when Douglas Wolk reviewed the album for Pitchfork as part of the ‘Story of an Artist’ box-set, he described both it and Don’t Be Scared as ‘lacking in quality control.’ In the months following Johnston’s death, several retrospectives on his career were published. New York Times‘ ’12 essential Daniel Johnston tracks’ article written by David Peisner features the first two tracks from The What Of Whom . Atwood Magazine’s retrospective called Man Obsessed ‘A darkly comedic inversion of 60s beat era pop’. When reviewing the album. Alison Alber (writing for Mxdwn) mentioned the song as an example of Johnston’s lyrical talent. A 2023 exhibit of collage artwork by Daniel and his sister Marjory Johnston at the Street Gallery in Austin was titled after the album. Covers Several notable musical acts have covered material from the album, “To Go Home” has been covered by Groovie Ghoulies, M. Ward (on his Post-War album) and The Copyrights. “Blue Clouds” has been covered by Mercury Rev (for The Late Great Daniel Johnston tribute album) and Adam Stafford. “Man Obsessed” has been covered by “Weird Paul” Petroskey, and Built to Spill covered “Heart Mind and Soul” for their Daniel Johnston tribute album. The What of Whom (1982) by Daniel Johnston

Available for the very first time in 24bit lossless audio, each recording has been remastered from the original source tapes by Kramer (Shimmy-Disc founder and longtime collaborator of Daniel Johnston). 100% of profits go to the Daniel Johnston Estate for the purpose of securing his musical and artistic legacy. credits released January 1, 1983 These recordings were originally released on cassette by Stress Records in Austin, TX. The audio was sourced courtesy of Jeff Tartakov, Stress founder and Daniel’s manager between 1986-1993. The Lost Recordings (1983) by Daniel Johnston

Background In early 1983, Johnston’s family became increasingly concerned about his mental and emotional health. His brother Dick offered to have Daniel stay with him over the summer in his home in Houston, Texas while he worked at Astroworld. Until that point, Daniel had been living and recording in his parents’ home in West Virginia, and following the relocation, no longer had access to this piano heard throughout his earlier tapes. Johnston instead purchased a chord organ and converted his brother’s garage into a recording studio. Along with the chord organ, Johnston also performed tracks on a detuned ukulele, most noticeably on “Sorry Entertainer”, which concludes with Johnston strumming the instrument’s four strings. Yip/Jump Music was recorded throughout 1983, with sessions beginning in April and concluding before Hi, How Are You was recorded in September. According to the album’s liner notes, most of the material was written in May 1983, but a handful of songs originated a month prior in April. The latter songs include “Dead Lover’s Twisted Heart”, “Love Defined (The Bible)”, “Museum Of Love” and “I Remember Painfully”. An earlier version of “Love Defined” featuring piano can be found on the Lost Recordings collection. The album makes several references to Johnston’s relocation. Most notably in “Worried Shoes” and “Chord Organ Blues”. The latter opens with the line “Everything’s Big In Texas, you know it is / I think I might have made a big mistake”. Yip/Jump also features several pop culture references, with songs dedicated to The Beatles, Casper The Friendly Ghost, Danny Rapp, and King Kong, the latter of which Johnston used as a metaphor for heartache. Stylistically, the album uses typical progressions from rock and roll, doo-wop and religious hymns, with a definitive and notable influence from The Beatles. Legacy Johnston would later re-record ‘Casper’ for three separate albums, Continued Story (1985), Merry Christmas (1988), and It’s Spooky (1989), the latter of which is a studio take and appeared only as a bonus track on the CD edition. On Johnston’s online store, Yip/Jump is referred to as ‘The most popular Daniel Johnston album of all.’ In 1987, The Dead Milkmen would include a cover of “Rocket Ship” on their album Bucky Fellini. The following year, Johnston collaborators Jad Fair and Kramer recorded a version of “King Kong” for their album Roll Out The Barrel, featuring Kim Gordon and Thurston Moore. In 1989, Half Japanese, a group that featured both Fair and Kramer, recorded “I Live For Love” for their album The Band That Would Be King. In 1990, Yo La Tengo recorded a version of “Speeding Motorcycle” on their album Fakebook, and a year later, The Pastels recorded their version. By 1993, Kurt Cobain had included Yip/Jump Music at number 35 in his top 50 albums list, and The Bartlebees recorded a cover of “Casper The Friendly Ghost”. The following year Kathy McCarty released her Daniel Johnston tribute album, Dead Dog’s Eyeball, which featured four songs from Yip/Jump Music – “Rocket Ship”, “Sorry Entertainer”, “Museum of Love” and “The Creature”. That same year, Half Japanese included a cover of “King Kong” on their album BOO! Live In Europe 1992. In 1995, “Casper The Friendly Ghost” was featured in the cult film Kids, and Mary Lou Lord covered “Speeding Motorcycle” for her self-titled EP. Groovie Ghoulies covered “Love Defined” on a split 10 inch EP, released in 1999. On the 2004 album The Late Great Daniel Johnston, four selections from Yip/Jump Music were included: Clem Snide‘s version of “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Your Grievances”, Calvin Johnson‘s “Sorry Entertainer”, Starlight Mints‘ “Dead Lover’s Twisted Heart” and Tom Waits‘ “King Kong”. Waits also included the latter on his 2006 album Orphans: Brawlers, Bawlers & Bastards. In 2005, Kathy McCarty released an extended version of “Dead Dogs Eyeball”, featuring an abridged version of “Worried Shoes”. In 2006, Robert Deeble covered “Speeding Motorcycle” and the tribute album I Killed The Monster was released, featuring Dot Allison performing “Don’t Let The Sun Go Down On Your Grievances” and Sufjan Stevens‘ “Worried Shoes”. In 2008, B. Fleischmann covered “King Kong” on his album Angst Is Not A Weltanschauung!. When NME reviewed the album in 2009, they awarded it 8/10 stars, simply saying, “Despite – possibly because – of their simple renderings, the songs shine”. The song “Worried Shoes” was also featured in the movie Where The Wild Things Are, performed by Karen O. Her version of “Worried Shoes” also featured in the 2009 film Tell Them Anything You Want: A Portrait of Maurice Sendak. Mike Doughty covered “Casper the Friendly Ghost” on his album Sad Man Happy Man. In 2012, M. Ward covered “Sweetheart” on his album A Wasteland Companion. The following year, Adrian Crowley and James Yorkston recorded a cover of “Don’t Let The Sun Go Down On Your Grievances” for their Johnston tribute mini-album, My Yoke Is Heavy. In 2014 The Unicorns released their cover of “Rocket Ship” as a bonus track from their 2003 album Who Will Cut Our Hair When We’re Gone?. Shortly following Johnston’s death, The Irish Times published a retrospective on the artist; the article described his music as “The Beatles as being sung with sincerity and intensity […] that the cliches take on a real emotional power”. In November 2019, Ben Lee released his cover of “Speeding Motorcycle” on his album Quarter Century Classix. In June 2021, the album was reviewed by Fruzsina Vida for The New Yorker; Vida described it as “a unique and often bizarre spin on these old themes [loneliness and unrequited love], reducing them to an almost childlike interpretation, rendering his songs rare and untouched by clichés”. She also commented on the production style, saying that on first listen it was distracting, “as Johnston seemingly milks his trademark DIY aesthetic for all it’s worth”. The following month, American singer-songwriter Sasami released a cover of “Sorry Entertainer”, similar in length to Calvin Johnson’s version, and in style to Kathy McCarty’s rock version. Yip Jump Music (1983) by Daniel Johnston

Background Retired Boxer was Johnston’s first album recorded in Austin, Texas, a location where he found much success. During the recording of ‘Hi, How Are You‘ the previous year, Johnston was living with his sister Margie but disappeared in April 1984 after his mother suggested institutionalizing him. He only told his parents where he was on Fathers Day of that year. He had purchased a moped and rode it to the local carnival where he began working at the Corn Dog Stand. Six months later, when the carnival arrived in Austin, Johnston had upset someone with how long he was taking on the porta-potty, which resulted in Johnston being punched. The assault left Johnston badly hurt, and he began searching for a nearby Church for help, before eventually arriving at the Austin University Church of Christ. The staff there took Johnston to a doctor and leased him an apartment. Whilst in Austin, Johnston also began working at McDonalds. His assault is referenced in the song ‘Bye-Bye Barbie’, with the lyric ‘A knock in the skull sure changes a man’. Most of the album features Johnston playing the piano, save for the final track, ‘True Love Will Find You In The End’, where he plays acoustic guitar. Johnston was influenced to start playing the guitar by the legacy of Austin-based guitar players. Artwork / Title The album’s artwork features Johnston’s character of Joe The Boxer, who was featured heavily in the lyrics to ‘Hi, How Are You’. The title came after Johnston got a concussion in a fight at the carnival. He had considered himself tough beforehand but realized he was not. As a result, he decided to name the album ‘Retired Boxer.’ Promotion As had been done with ‘Hi, How Are You‘, Johnston began to give away copies of Retired Boxer to anyone he could. Since he was now living in Austin, these often ended up in the hands of influential figures in the local music scene, such as Louis Black of the Austin Chronicle, who was also given copies of Hi, How Are You, and Yip/Jump Music. Black began playing the material for other music writers as well as musicians, whilst Johnston himself continued to hand out copies, inciting a local interest. Legacy “True Love Will Find You in the End” has been covered by countless artists, including Headless Heroes, Wilco, Beck, Richard Walters, Spectrum, Mates of State, Spiritualised, Steve Harley, The Legendary Tigerman with Cibelle, Elizabeth & the Catapult, A Whisper in the Noise, Svavar Knútur, Fritz Ostermayer, Kevin Blechdom, Noël Akchoté & Brad Jones, Milky Wimpshake & Tape Deck Mountain and Shakey Graves & Jess Williamson. Whilst some covers, like Jad Fair & Kramer‘s, Mathew Good‘s, Adrian Crowley & James Yorkston‘s and Kate Davis‘, retain the original 2 minute structure of the song, it’s more common for artists to expand upon the original either through a slower tempo or repeated sections. Johnston’s original “True Love Will Find You in the End” was used in a 2012 commercial for Axe men’s hair care product. Kathy McCarty recorded a cover of ‘Oh No’ for her Dead Dogs Eyeball cover album. As a benefit for the mental health charity Hi How Are You Project, American singer-bassist Kate Davis released her own re-recording of the album, titled Strange Boy, which was released on January 29, 2021, with “Oh No” acting as the album’s lead single, released to SoundCloud in November 2020. Davis’ appreciation for the album comes from the DIY aspects of it as well as its lyrical themes, saying Johnston’s music was ‘complete, while leaving room for you to take it wherever you want it to go’. Johnston’s death, which took place during production of the album, was influential on her performance of it, in particular for the song ‘Too Young To Die’, which was also dedicated to her deceased father. Retired Boxer (1984) by Daniel Johnston

Background In the eleven months between the recording of Retired Boxer and Continued Story, Daniel Johnston had been expanding his reach with local live performances in Austin, Texas. appearing at the Woodshock 85 festival with The Texas Instruments and on the MTV program The Cutting Edge. These appearances featured Johnston performing newly written non-album material such as ‘I Live My Broken Dreams’ and ‘The Marching Guitars‘. About a month following his appearance on MTV in August, Johnston stopped playing live shows; a decision referenced in the track ‘Running Water Revisited.’ During this period, Johnston was still working at McDonald’s. The managers there were aware of Johnston’s popularity and were amused by it, so they expanded his weekly hours to 20 or 30. Additionally, Johnston didn’t have a phone, and so the only way to contact him was through McDonald’s, which eventually became an irritation for management. Recording Thanks to the publicity he was getting, Johnston attracted the attention of producer Kim Fowley, who was interested to hear what he would sound like in a studio environment. Fowley had organized for The Texas Instruments to act as Johnston’s backing band and paid for the sessions but was largely uninvolved, only entering the studio on one occasion. Joe Johnson produced ten of the album’s tracks at Europa Studios, with four additional tracks recorded elsewhere by either Johnston himself or Pam Peltz. The album also features two other guest performers, Bill Anderson, who co-wrote two of its tracks, and Rick Morgan, who appears only on ‘It’s Over.’ Johnston was pleased with the initial recordings but was shocked by the creative control Fowley had demanded afterward. According to Johnston, Fowley wanted more of Johnston’s earlier material to be re-recorded, this time with additional saxophones. When Fowley heard the finished album, he was disappointed and said that the songs sounded ‘unfinished.’ He also wanted Johnston to sign a contract that would have given Fowley full ownership over the masters, songwriting credit, and 50% publishing rights. Johnston refused the deal, and Jeff Tartakov, his manager at the time, obtained ownership of the album on Johnston’s behalf, leading to Johnston’s self-released version. Sonically, the album showcases a more rock-oriented sound than that found in Johnston’s earlier music, and is particularly stylized in the indie rock or pop-rock styles. Additionally, clear influences on the album include pop from the 1920s – 1930s, as well as the music of Lennon/McCartney. Also included on the album are re-recorded versions of two tracks featured on two of Johnston’s self-produced 1983 tapes, ‘Running Water’ from ‘Hi How Are You‘ and ‘Casper’ from ‘Yip/Jump Music‘; however, neither of the re-recordings took place at Europa Studios. Continued Story marks the end of an incredibly productive era for Johnston; between 1981 and 1985, Daniel had recorded nine albums but would not make his next until three years later. Artwork The album’s artwork depicts a “Fly Eye”,’ a Johnston invention representing supernatural watchfulness. Johnston’s other drawings of the Fly Eyes depict them as either comforting or sinister, watching over the world’s every move, with Johnston referring to them as “Good/Evil”. In the song “Fly Eye”, Johnston attempts to calm one, in order to transform it into a less ominous constant companion. Legacy A live recording of ‘Funeral Home’ would be included on Daniel Johnston’s ‘1990‘ album. The ‘1990’ version is triple the length of the studio take. In 1993, The Fellow Travellers recorded a cover of ‘It’s Over’ for ‘A Tribute To Daniel Johnston Vol. 2‘, and the year afterwards, Kathy McCarty included the song as the final track on her ‘Dead Dog’s Eyeball’ album; which is made up entirely of Daniel Johnston covers. In 2004, John Wayne Shot Me recorded a cover of ‘Funeral Home’ for their EP ‘Let Sleeping Monsters Sleep.’ Singer-songwriter Beabadoobee revealed in a 2019 interview that she has a tattoo of the album’s artwork, and in 2021, the Johnston estate released an NFT based on Daniel’s Hi How Are You artwork featuring an instrumental excerpt from the track ‘Fly Eye’. Continued Story (1985) by Daniel Johnston

Writing Daniel Johnston wrote the album over four years between 1984 and 1988. The song “True Love Will Find You in the End” is possibly the earliest and had initially appeared on Johnston’s December ’84 demo tape Retired Boxer. In December 1985, an earlier version of “Funeral Home” appeared on his Continued Story album; later, in 1987, Johnston released an early version of “Don’t Play Cards with Satan” on A Texas Trip. Johnston had spent the entirety of 1987 living in West Virginia with his parents; he was heavily medicated after a severe mental breakdown in December 1986 and found himself unable to write new material. The track “Some Things Last a Long Time” was co-written with Jad Fair, who Johnston first met in April 1988. Home demo versions of the songs “Held the Hand”, “Don’t Play Cards with Satan”, and “Lord Give Me Hope” appeared on Johnston’s Merry Christmas tape, released in December 1988. 1990 also features a cover of the Paul McCartney composition “Got to Get You into My Life” (credited to Lennon/McCartney.) McCartney stated he had written the song about marijuana, which had been earlier covered in Johnston’s song “Pot-Head” on Songs of Pain. Johnston had been regularly smoking marijuana with his then manager before his mental breakdown in 1986. Recording 1990 is made up entirely of recordings made during Johnston’s April 1988 visit to New York City. During 1987 (his ‘lost year’), Johnston’s then-manager Jeff Tartakov was busy expanding Johnston’s relationships with other contemporary acts, such as Jad Fair and Sonic Youth. Eventually, Johnston was invited by Steve Shelley of Sonic Youth to visit New York and do some recordings. In New York, Johnston first met with Jad Fair who co-wrote the track “Some Things Last a Long Time” and would later record the album It’s Spooky with Johnston. While in New York, Johnston recorded at Noise New York Studios during sessions produced by Kramer. Tracks 1–5 and 8 were recorded during these sessions. Whilst at Noise New York, Johnston recorded with Moe Tucker and appeared on two tracks of her second album, Life in Exile After Abdication. The visit was supposed to last for less than a week, with Johnston performing a handful of concerts to promote himself between the 15th and 18th, but Johnston remained in New York for twice that amount of time. Once he arrived there, he stopped taking his medication, which led to his increasingly erratic behavior. The start of his unstable behavior was an arrest at the Statue of Liberty, where he was caught drawing Ichthys in the stairwell. Shortly afterward, on April 15, Johnston performed a 20-minute gig at Pier Platters in Hoboken, New Jersey. The show saw Johnston performing largely unreleased material, including “Spirit World Rising,” the album version of which was recorded at Noise New York. The final six minutes of the concert, during which Johnston performs “Careless Soul” and “Funeral Home,” from his Continued Story album, were included on 1990. Tartakov later said that Johnston was “proselytizing” the audience throughout the concert through religious monologues. The concert had led those around Johnston to believe that things were getting out of control and that he needed to be returned home. Shelley threatened to call Johnston’s parents, which caused a fight between the two. Johnston was afraid he would be institutionalized again and so ran away. Along with the rest of Sonic Youth, Shelley eventually found Johnston in a hotel parking lot and attempted to convince him to return home. But Johnston was confident he was on a mission from God and had to stay in New York. After this, Shelley, who Johnston had been staying with up until that point, asked Kramer to look after him for a few days, but after a few days together, Johnston attempted to return to Shelley. He was found by Kramer a few days later being thrown out of a hotel room. The next day Lee Ranaldo found him at a men’s shelter in the Bowery, where Johnston was assaulted and lost some possessions. Eventually, some friends made arrangements to take him to the bus station and bought him a ticket home; where they thought they saw him get onto the bus. Two days later, Johnston was sighted again in New York City. On April 22, he was admitted into a mental hospital in Bellevue but was released that same day due to a clerical error and opened for Firehose at CBGBs that same night. The tracks “Tears Stupid Tears” and “Don’t Play Cards with Satan” were recorded at this concert. Following the events of this week Johnston was dropped from Blast First before any release. Johnston was eventually returned to his parents’ home in West Virginia and recorded the album It’s Spooky with Jad Fair in Maryland during August of that same year. There he recorded an alternate version of “Tears Stupid Tears” later included on CD versions of It’s Spooky. Johnston was institutionalized upon his return to West Virginia after an elderly woman broke both her ankles fleeing Johnston out a window. Johnston had attempted to break into her home amidst a severe mental episode. He was placed into Weston Mental Hospital, where he would remain until after the album’s release. Johnston alludes to the album’s troubled production in the film The Angel and Daniel Johnston – Live at the Union Chapel when he mentions that the album had originally intended to be called 1989, but they had not been able to release it that year. The LP was released on Shimmy-Disc in January 1990 to widespread acclaim. Prior to the album’s release, Jad Fair’s band Half Japanese released their version of “Some Things Last A Long Time” on The Band That Would Be King. The version featured on that album does not feature Johnston’s contributions. The album includes a cover of “I Live For Love” from Yip/Jump Music. Artwork Unlike Johnston’s earlier ten albums featuring hand-drawn sketches by Johnston as their covers, 1990 instead features a photograph of Johnston pointing at a painting depicting a once-mighty tree, now reduced to a stump in a barren and desolate field, with a small but bright twig sprouting in front of it. It is one of Johnston’s few paintings and represents eternal and undying hope. It is titled Hope. Johnston took inspiration from the piece and kept the painting in his home studio throughout the remainder of his life. The photograph …

Writing Following his year-long stay at Weston Mental Hospital, Johnston recorded the Laurie EP in December 1989, the title track of which is featured on this album. A few months later, after the release of Johnston’s 1990 album, Johnston was invited to promote it with three short performances at SXSW. Instead of performing material from the album, Johnston debuted new material and reworked selections from his 1983 demo tapes. Johnston premiered four songs at these shows, ‘Silly Love,’ ‘Do You Really Love Me?’, ‘A Lonely Song’ & ‘Love Wheel.’ ‘Do You Really Love Me?” was eventually re-worked into ‘Tell Me Now’, and the rest were shelved for future releases. Immediately following the performances, Johnston was hospitalized for five months between March and August 1990, after causing his father to crash his plane into a forest amidst a delusional episode. During this period Johnston’s popularity continued to rise, partially thanks to Homestead Records‘ continued re-issues of his earlier tapes, concluding in 1991 with a cassette / LP version of Continued Story, and the ‘Continued Story / Hi, How Are You‘ CD. During this time Firehose’ cover of Walking The Cow was released on their Flyin’ the Flannel album, and The Pastels released their cover of Speeding Motorcycle, continuing to boost Johnston’s notoriety as a songwriter. The songwriting style on this album showcases Johnston’s commercial ambitions, and slyly nods to his growing fame. The lyrics also refer to Johnston’s improving mental state, in particular the song ‘I Killed The Monster’ confidently boasts that Johnston had defeated his personal demons. Recording Although it is considered a ‘studio’ album, the songs were actually recorded by Kramer in a make-shift studio in the garage at Chuck Picklesimer’s house in July 1991, in Daniel’s home state of West Virginia. For the album, he formed The Eye Band; a backing band made up entirely of Johnston’s friends. The sessions were produced by Kramer, who was also responsible for his previous album, 1990. Although the sessions took place in West Virginia, by late 1991, the Johnston family had relocated to Waller, Texas. The album is dedicated to Laurie Allen, Johnston’s muse who he had not seen in over a decade at that point. A copy of the album had been sent to her. Johnston was thrilled to find she enjoyed the album. Critical reception Professional ratings Review scores Source Rating AllMusic The Encyclopedia of Popular Music MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide Spin Alternative Record Guide 3/10 Trouser Press called the album an “ebullient blast of lo-fi electric garage-rock,” writing that “the glimmers of deliverance make this cogent album as encouraging as it is enjoyable.” Legacy Two years after the album was released, Television Personalities released a cover of ‘Honey I Sure Miss You’. That same year, Terry Burrows, under the pseudonym of Yukio Yung, released a cover of ‘I Feel So High’. Canadian twee pop band Cub released a cover of “Tell Me Now” on their 1993 album “Betti-Cola“. In 2004, Jad Fair and Teenage Fanclub collaborated on a cover of “My Life Is Starting Over Again” for the Daniel Johnston tribute album The Late Great Daniel Johnston: Discovered Covered. A few years later, in 2006, the album’s producer Kramer performed bass and keyboards on a cover of “Honey I Sure Miss You”. That same year, Jad Fair and Teenage Fanclub released a cover of “Happy Soul”. In a 2009 interview, Jeffrey Lewis cited Artistic Vice specifically as an influence on his songwriting. In 2019, The New York Times included “My Life is Starting Over” in their list of Johnston’s 12 essential tracks. The following year the album was reissued on vinyl as part of the box set The End Is Never Really Over. That same year Built To Spill covered “Tell Me Now” and “Honey I Sure Miss You” as part of their Johnston tribute album, and folk supergroup I Was A King, featuring Frøkedal, Norman Blake and Robyn Hitchcock, released their cover of “Honey I Sure Miss You”. Artistic Vice (1991) by Daniel Johnston

Why Me? is a live album recorded in Germany by Daniel Johnston. Recorded live at Volksbühne am Rosa-Luxemburg-Platz in Berlin, Germany on 6/6/1999. Why Me? (2000) by Daniel Johnston

Fear Yourself is an album by the American musician Daniel Johnston, released in 2003. It was produced by Mark Linkous. The album included an 8-page booklet with exclusive Daniel Johnston drawings. Critical reception The Independent wrote that the “fancy production … works to a point, but, by the end, you find yourself preferring Johnston’s usual eerie starkness.” The Washington Post determined that “Johnston’s pained, humble songs are eerie and sensuous, emotionally textured in a way that demands only amplification, and Linkous’s vintage box of tricks suits the songs beautifully.” The New York Times concluded that Linkous’s contribution to the music “reveals the cracked, epic romances hidden within Mr. Johnston’s singsong.” Fear Yourself (2003) by Daniel Johnston

The Late Great Daniel Johnston: Discovered Covered is a 2004 Gammon Records two-disc set. The first disc features covers of Daniel Johnston songs by a variety of different artists. The second disc features the original versions of these eighteen songs, as well as “Rock This Town”, a previously unreleased Johnston track. It was curated and produced by Mark Linkous of Sparklehorse. Despite what the title and cover art may suggest, Johnston lived to see the album’s release; he died fifteen years later in 2019.   Disc 1: No. Title Artist Length 1. “My Life is Starting Over Again” Teenage Fanclub with Jad Fair   2. “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Your Grievances” Clem Snide   3. “Impossible Love” Gordon Gano   4. “Living Life” Eels   5. “Walking the Cow“ TV on the Radio   6. “Good Morning You” The Rabbit   7. “Sorry Entertainer” Calvin Johnson   8. “Devil Town” Bright Eyes with Nick Zinner   9. “Dream Scream” Death Cab for Cutie   10. “True Love Will Find You in the End” Beck   11. “Go” Sparklehorse with The Flaming Lips   12. “Blue Clouds” Mercury Rev   13. “Love Not Dead” Thistle LLC   14. “Like a Monkey in a Zoo” Vic Chesnutt   15. “Dead Lover’s Twisted Heart” Starlight Mints   16. “Story of an Artist” M. Ward   17. “The Sun Shines Down on Me” Guster   18. “King Kong” Tom Waits   Disc 2: All tracks on this disc performed by Daniel Johnston. No. Title Album Length 1. “My Life is Starting Over Again” Artistic Vice   2. “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Your Grievances” Yip/Jump Music   3. “Impossible Love” Rejected Unknown   4. “Living Life” Songs of Pain   5. “Walking the Cow“ Hi, How Are You   6. “Good Morning You” Respect   7. “Sorry Entertainer” Yip/Jump Music   8. “Devil Town” 1990   9. “Dream Scream” Rejected Unknown   10. “True Love Will Find You in the End” Retired Boxer   11. “Go” Respect   12. “Blue Clouds” The What of Whom   13. “Love Not Dead” Fear Yourself   14. “Like a Monkey in a Zoo” Songs of Pain   15. “Dead Lover’s Twisted Heart” Yip/Jump Music   16. “Story of an Artist” Don’t Be Scared   17. “The Sun Shines Down on Me” Don’t Be Scared   18. “King Kong” Yip/Jump Music   19. “Rock This Town” Previously unreleased The Late Great Daniel Johnston: Discovered Covered (2004) by Daniel Johnston

“Welcome To My World” is a collection of some of Daniel’s most-beloved songs. These are the songs that built the legend…a must-have for the legion of devoted Daniel Johnston Fans as well as the perfect introduction for new listeners. Includes several tracks from out-of-print publications like “Laurie” and “Lennon Song”. credits released April 18, 2006 Remastered in 24-bit Lossless Audio from the original source tapes by Kramer (Shimmy-Disc founder and longtime collaborator of Daniel Johnston). Welcome To My World (2006) by Daniel Johnston

Beam Me Up! is the eighteenth and final album by Daniel Johnston released on June 17th 2010. The album was recorded with the eleven-piece BEAM orchestra, and features reworked versions of Johnston’s older songs along with three new songs: “Sarah Drove Around In Her Car”, “Mask”, and “Last Song”. Credits Remastered in 24-bit Lossless Audio from the original source tapes by Kramer (Shimmy-Disc founder and longtime collaborator of Daniel Johnston). All songs were written by Daniel Johnston, published by E.Y.E. Music and BMG Music Publishing. Arrangements by Bart van Dongen, Eric van der Westen, Richard van Kuijsdijk and Andreas van Zoelen. Recorded by Kaneoka One and Chris Müller at W2 in ‘s-Hertogenbosch. Mixed and mastered by Kaneoka One and Two Horses at Hazelwood Studios/ Frankfurt am Main. Produced by Hazelwood Music Production and Production House Muzieklab Brabant.Acoustic Guitar, Electric Guitar – Michiel StekelenburgBass Saxophone, Baritone Saxophone – Andreas van ZoelenCello – Jacqueline HamelinkDouble Bass – Eric van der WestenDrums – Yonga SunElectric Guitar – Bruno NelissenElectronics, Keyboards, Electronic Drums [Percussion] – Richard Van Kruijsdijk*Guitar, Vocals – Daniel JohnstonKeyboards – Bart van DongenSoprano Saxophone, Tenor Saxophone, Alto Saxophone – Guido NijsTrombone, Accordion – Hans SparlaViolin – Yvonne van de Pol Beam Me Up! (2010) by Daniel Johnston and B.E.A.M. Orchestra

Released January 19, 2024, this historic release is available in three distinct vinyl pressings and one limited-edition cassette. The 1st pressing is limited to 555 hand-numbered LP’s on 150gm black vinyl. It includes a VERY SPECIAL Art Print of a previously unseen Daniel Johnston colored marker drawing available ONLY in this first pressing. This very special release also features a limited-edition 2nd pressing of 999 LP’s on “Ghost White” vinyl, in memory of ‘Casper’, one of Daniel’s favorite characters. An “Invisibly Clear” vinyl pressing is also available, and will arrive in stores on January 19, 2024 along with the limited-edition cassette. The free digital download card that accompanies each vinyl purchase also includes “The Telephone Demos”. NOTE: The first pressing of 555 black vinyl LP’s will be available ONLY from the Shimmy-Shop and Bandcamp. Also included in each of the three vinyl pressings is a beautiful 3-ft tall fold-out poster of Daniel in New York City. The 56 minute Cassette release also includes “The Telephone Demos”. (From the LP Liner Notes): “Daniel played several shows in New York City in April of the year 2000, but there is no way to know for certain the exact date this recording was made, or the venue in which the performance took place. Sorry. This LP was Mastered from a ‘DAT’ Kramer found 20 years later. It contains one brilliant Daniel Johnston performance in its entirety, unedited, unaltered, unforgettable. These memories conclude with a brief excerpt from a street interview Daniel gave in New York City, recorded during the same period in his extraordinary life. We hope you find yourself treasuring these frozen moments as much as we do. The End.” Shimmy-Disc is elated to announce a brand new LP from the legendary American artist Daniel Johnston, titled “ALIVE in NEW YORK CITY” – a full live concert captured in front of an audience of his most devoted fans in New York, the city of Daniel’s dreams. Daniel is at the very height of his performing powers here, with his poignant voice and exquisite heart beating in full bloom, and the audience is with him all the way. No other live performance recording we’ve ever heard captures the marriage of audience & performer in the way this one has. Hearing it, is like being there. Daniel gave it all on this very special night. This is the first official vinyl release of Daniel performing live in the USA, and Shimmy-Disc is proud to be partnering with The Daniel Johnston Estate for this historic vinyl event. Recorded and live-mixed by Kramer in April of 2000, the long-lost tape was found by Kramer 20 years later, marked solely with the words “NYC April 2000”. So despite best efforts (and adding to the mystery behind the origins of this recording), we are unable to determine with 100% certainty the actual venue at which the performance took place, since Daniel played several gigs in NYC at around this same time. The LP contains one brilliant Daniel Johnston performance in its entirety, unedited, unaltered, and unforgettable, concluding with a brief excerpt from a street interview Daniel gave in New York City that was recorded during the same explosively creative period in his extraordinary life. It’s a real time-capsule for Daniel’s fans, and a real tear-jerker… “You’re never really gone”, he says.Perhaps the most exciting feature of this amazing live LP is the fact that it contains TWO SONGS that appear on no other Daniel Johnston release, making it a priceless addition to Dan’s catalog. The recording captures him at an unusually happy point in his life. We are given a rare, uncensored glimpse into one-night-in-the-very-real-life of Daniel Johnston, wherein the physical rendering of his lyrics transcends the music and works as a beacon into the tender soul of a genius. We hear him grappling LIVE ONSTAGE with his enduring struggles of how to love himself and how to find his place in the world, as he experiences it. In his songs, Daniel shows us that it is a universal struggle shared amongst all of us. He reminds us (as perhaps no other artist ever has) that we are all just human, and that the only hope we truly ever have in finding Love, is to just keep trying. He articulates these feelings perhaps best of all in the two previously unreleased songs; MEMORY OF LOVE, and SUPER LOVE. These two stand-out tracks are sure to become classics in Daniel’s posthumous repertoire, and they make this “ALIVE IN NEW YORK CITY” LP instantly indispensable to both fans and collectors alike. Shimmy-Disc is proud to present this new LP to the world along with 18 minutes of FREE digital-download-only bonus material comprised of some of the rarest audio treasures from the Daniel Johnston Archives – a series of ‘Telephone Demos’ created by Daniel specifically for sending over the phone to friends, fans and radio stations worldwide. As the consummate self-promoter, Daniel loved the telephone, and he used it the same way Ernie Kovacs used the TV, gleefully experimenting to his heart’s delight. It was very often his creative medium of choice during his early formative years. These little teleplays from Daniel’s pre-”1990” days have never been heard before, so his most devoted fans will surely go wild with joy over this newly discovered and precious cargo from the young mind of this universally beloved, one-of-a-kind artist.  Alive in New York City by Daniel Johnston

“Dear Jeff, Well, here’s another issue of ‘The Lost Recordings.’ I swear when I listen to these tapes I get a deja-fu, and I can remember the moment and the melodies. Every time! It’s uncanny! I went up to the house today and banged on the piano. I can still make up melodies but the words aren’t coming quite yet. From listening to these tapes you can really tell just how in love I really was! I’d think about her all the time, romantically at the piano! It’s really what my music was all about. Before I left West Virginia I decided to rap it all up with a final batch of songs. I feel like I haven’t even started doing music yet. As if all the past I was just practicing. Now I’m ready to really do it and make albums and stuff. Well, until next time this is your friend and mine wishing you the best.” -Daniel Johnston credits released December 6, 2024 All songs written by Daniel Johnston except where noted. Additional guitars and vocals by Tom Gruda, Sr. Compiled by Jeff Tartakov in September, 2024. Remastered in 24-bit Lossless Audio from the original source tapes by Kramer (Shimmy-Disc founder and Daniel’s longtime collaborator) Lost Recordings IV (1980-1983) by Daniel Johnston